A Historical Perspective Of American Cuisine and The Blend-in Of Asian Dining (5/6)

? 1937 The shopping cart makes its debut. ? 1946 Percy Spencer stands next to a magnetron, and the candy bar in his pocket melts. A year later he debuts a 750-pound microwave oven. ? 1953 Swanson marries a postwar demand for time-saving devices to the country's newest obsession, and voilà: TV dinners. ? 1964 Ron Popeil pitches his Veg-O-Matic on TV, pioneering the infomercial. ? 1972 The Spa on Harvard Square in Cambridge, Mass., puts yogurt through a soft-serve ice cream machine, producing frozen yogurt. By the 1950s, Hauser’s bestselling book, Look Younger Live Longer, challenged America's postwar eating habits. He railed against processed foods while championing foods that he thought promoted longevity--yogurt, brewer's yeast, powdered skim milk, and blackstrap molasses. His message--to eat whole foods--was decidedly against the tide. While the government was supporting the production of enriched white breads as a "quiet miracle" to improve nutrition, Hauser suggested that such bread be labeled "devitalized" instead. Hauser believed many ailments could be eased through strategic eating--most significantly with a diet rich in vitamin B foods. But he found mainstream medicine little help, calling its clinics "human machine shops" and offering his own alternative regimens on how to stop hardening of the arteries, prevent stroke, and guard against cancer. In 1902 The Kellogg brothers push boiled wheat through a roller and bake the thin flakes. Looking for a tastier version, they switch the base ingredient, and cornflakes are born. Yet the real story behind cornflakes is the history of the health-reform movement in America. The reformers were utopian thinkers, yearning for a society transformed by diet, free of disease, pure, a life filled with the bounty and simplicity of the Garden of Eden. They believed that eating what Adam and Eve ate would restore balance to the body. Meat, shellfish, fatty sauces, salt, spices, sugar, coffee, tea, condiments, and, of course, alcohol were forbidden. The simpler, plainer, and more natural the food ... the more healthy, vigorous, and long-lived will be the body. Asian Foods Heal. While a century ago the idea that a healthy diet is based on fruit, vegetables, and whole grains seemed like the quirky brainchild of wacky health reformers, today Americans have taken the message to heart. The rising Asian food and restaurants are catering the needs of health concerned Americans. “Asian ingredients are influencing other cuisines as people believe Asian foods heal.” said Jacqueline M. Newman, food editor, “These thoughts are ‘in,’ so people try more, like more, and report that their healing properties as ‘working.’” Asian cooking places an emphasis on fresh ingredients, balance of meat and vegetables, free use of herbal and spices, natural flavors…Asian cuisines represent a fresh and healthy way of dining…which is one of the many causes for the increasing popularity of Asian restaurants in the U.S. The Benefits Of Asian Cuisine are listed as follows: * Lots of fruits and veggies. The Asian food plan is made up of more fruits and vegetables than the typical Western diet. This is good news because of the fiber and abundance of vitamins and minerals that go along with it. * Less red meat. More fish. Seafood takes the lead as a protein source over red meat. Red meat is seen more as a condiment to a larger portion of vegetables. More seafood means more healthful omega-3 fatty acids and less overall cholesterol. * More herbs and spices. Compared with the typical bland Western diet, Asian cuisine can be quite flavorful and more satisfying. The use of highly aromatic herbs and spices can leave you much more satiated than boring, flat-tasting foods.